text: In some transitions a number of atoms occupying crystallographic positions that were originally equivalent will move away slightly from their ideal positions according to a certain pattern. This pattern or repeat motif may span multiple unit cells. The cause of this phenomenon is the small changes in chemical bonding that favor formations of semi-regular and larger clusters of atoms. Although having the undistorted substructure, these materials are typically unsaturated in the sense that one of the bands in the band structure is only partially filled. The distortion changes the band structure, in part splitting the bands up into smaller bands that can be more completely filled or emptied to lower the energy of the system. This process may not go to completion, however, because the substructure only allows for a certain amount of distortion. Superstructures of this type are often incommensurate. A good example is found in the structural transitions of 1T-TaS, a compound with a partially filled, narrow d band (Ta(IV) has a d configuration).